


Topsy Turvy, Baby

by ninkybean



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV), Life as We Know It (2010)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-28
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-03-26 07:20:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19001026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninkybean/pseuds/ninkybean
Summary: When Theon Greyjoy and Sansa Stark are named godparents of Robb and Margaery's new baby girl, they assume they'll only have to put on a brave face and get along for birthdays, christenings, school plays.Little do they know.





	1. Prologue

"Yes Robb, I'm just leaving now." Sansa says down the phone as she struggles putting an earring in and sliding a black heel onto her foot at the same time. "No, I won't be rude to him. I know how badly you want this to go well, for some reason. Okay, bye. I love you too. Tell Margaery I said hi."  
Sansa just gets to glance at herself in the mirror, satisfied with her appearance, before there's a knock at her door. Breathlessly she opens it, and sees Theon Greyjoy standing before her. He's wearing a black biker jacket and grey jeans. His hair is wild and beard scruffy, like he rolled out of bed, put on some clothes and showed up at her door all within 15 minutes. Sansa thinks how she started getting ready an hour and a half ago, and only just managed to finish in time. 

"Hello love." Theon smiles lopsidedly, and Sansa smiles gracefully back.  
"Hello yourself. Ready to go?"  
"Ready when you are."

They make their way down the steps of Sansa's block of flats. Theon's converse are scuffed and the laces are grey. The sounds their foot steps make as they walk down the stairway differ so greatly that Sansa listens intently as they walk.  
"So, Robb tells me you've just moved to Winterfell." Sansa starts the conversation between the two.  
"Yup," Theon replies, "I used to live in Pyke, but there wasn't really anything for me there. My sister, and a dead-beat dad but, that's about it."  
Sansa nods, not relating but understanding all the same. She came with emotional baggage too.  
As they step outside she glances around. "Where's your car?" She asks.  
"Car?" Theon scoffs. "I haven't got a car love, but I have got a motorbike, with an extra helmet and enough room for two if you hold on. I promise I won't read into it too much if you want to hold on really tight."  
Sansa looks at Theon incredulously. "A motorbike? Nope. No way. Do I look dressed to go through 40mph winds to you? We’ll take my car instead. I’ll drive.”  
They cram into Sansa’s car and pause for a second, taking in the last 5 minutes. Robb and Margaery don’t know her as well as she thought, and Robb’s her fucking brother for pete’s sake. 

“So, where to?” Theon asks, words travelling out of mouth and hanging in the space between them in Sansa’s car, so forced that Sansa wants to grab on to them and stuff them back into his mouth.  
“Wherever you made reservations for, like you said you would, Theon.”  
“Right. Yes. Reservations. Didn’t make those. Um, you choose where we go, and we’ll just go grab a table.”  
“Just grab a table? Just grab a ta—” Sansa sighs, rubs her temple. “I’ll see if Hotpie can squeeze us in. He’s an old friend from culinary school. “  
Just as she says that Theon’s phone starts ringing, Sir Mix-A-Lot’s Baby Got Back serenading the two of them.  
“You going to— are you going to answer that?” Sansa queries, disbelief leaking in her tone at how her night is ending up.  
“Nah, I’ll just let it ring out,” Theon shrugs.  
“Just answer it.”  
Theon looks at her, raises his eyebrows, and draws his phone out his pocket.  
“Hello…you…” He trails off, glancing over at Sansa. Sansa watches him with rising annoyance. “Tonight? Okay, Yeah. Eleven.” Sana can’t believe her ears now. “How about-“ Theon pauses, lowering his voice, “half ten. Alright.” Theon hangs up. “Sick friend.” He says to her with no conviction.  
“We don’t have to do this.” Sansa suggests, staring in front of her, waiting for his answer.  
“Really? Okay.” Theon replies, and turns to leave the car.  
“Are you taking the piss?”  
“Look, we both know that the best way this night is going to end is us getting drunk, having sex, and disappointing Robb and Margaery because we can never be in the same room again after that. So let’s just skip the bullshit. Go do whatever it is you do on a Saturday night. Do you read? You look like you read.”  
Sansa splutters: “What kind of prick are you? Robb and Margaery set this up for us, and we owe it to them.”  
“Look, love, it’s a Saturday night, I’m in a new city, and I want to have some fun.”  
“Of course, of course, you want to have some fun. Well get the hell out of my car and go have it, Theon Greyjoy.” She spits, grabbing her bag and slamming the door she only opened 2 minute ago.  
“Okay. I will. Robb and Margaery clearly weren’t thinking straight when they set us up."  
“Clearly.” Sansa retorts, then pulls up the phone to Margaery audibly in front of Theon.

“Marg, the only way you and that twat of a brother of mine are going to make it up to me for this is if you promise me I never have to be in the same room as Theon Greyjoy again.”


	2. Sansa

Chop. Add. Mix. Chop. Add. Mix. Sansa repeats this in the kitchen of her shop 'Slice' whilst her employees bustle around her, ringing up customer orders, cutting cakes, piping icing. Sansa is chopping, adding and mixing to drown out everything around her. She finds it therapeutic. She has ever since she was little, watching her father baking in their kitchen and helping whenever she was allowed. Her mother, Catelyn, usually made the tea for everybody, plating up pasta and bread and greens, but her father baked for fun. And Sansa watched his large hands as they folded in flower and cracked eggs, being able to count on the fact that her father's end product would be melt in the mouth or crunchy, knowing that she had helped in making it. Sometimes Ned would add a little lemon twist, just for her, and Sansa had never felt so loved or wanted or seen in her short life. She cherished those moments.

Now, in her shop, she bakes for business. She doesn't regret opening up Slice, but having to make three quiches, two banana breads and several cakes before close in preparation for tomorrow can take the fun out of it in some ways. She doesn't get to add a little lemon twist because she isn't baking for her, she's baking for others. So Sansa relishes in the method of the bake, the chopping, adding and mixing. It's second nature to her now, a time she can disconnect from reality and just be.

The shop door opening jolts her from her baking trance. It's 20 past 11 on a Monday, and Sansa knows that 'Doctor Love', as Arya has coined him, gets an earlier lunch break, so it can only mean one thing. She throws off her apron, takes down her hair, and only just manages to wipe the flour from under her eye before she slides up to the till and smiles what she hopes is a casual but intriguing smile. In front of her is the man of her dreams, although she doesn't know his name or anything about him really, only that he's a paediatrician and so is basically a hero for a living.

"Let me guess. Turkey on rye?" She teases, knowing full well that he has ordered the same sandwich 35 times before. Not that she's counting.  
"I'm becoming too predictable, I fear. But your turkey on rye is to die for, and if it isn't broke don't fix it, right?" He replies, eyes that are so dreamy Sansa wants to take a bath in them.  
"Of course." Sansa affirms, because inside she's screaming because Doctor Mcdreamyeyes thinks her sandwich is to die for.  
"How come you don't wear one of those name badges, so I can know what it is?" He asks her, a perfect smile gracing his perfect jawline and cheekbones.  
"I own the place. I'm Sansa."  
"Sansa. I'm Dickon"  
There we go. Perfect. Dr. Dickon Dreamboat, MD.  
"Hey, are you going to put your name down for the free lunch raffle?"  
"I will." He places a card in the bowl full of other wretched cards that Sansa now wants to place in the bin. "If I win, can I treat you to a free lunch, instead"  
Her heartbeat picks up speed now. He wants to take her to lunch? "I don't do free lunch, but I will split the bill with you."  
"It's done. Lets hope fate picks my card out of the bowl then, hey?"  
"I don't think fate will have much to do with it now."  
Dickon laughs, taking his turkey on rye and his dreaminess out of the shop. Sansa sighs so audibly that Jeyne, cutting up carrot cake behind her spins around.  
"You're a goner, pal." Jeyne is laughing at her, but Sansa doesn't care.  
"I will happily be a goner for any man with a bone structure like that." She sifts through the bowl of cards, but there's 4 Dickons in here and Sansa is tempted to sprint after the man and get his second name. Unfortunately, Sansa isn't particularly energetic and she doesn't want to appear like a panting, drooling mess in front of her future husband and father of her babies. Shit. She really is a goner.

20 to 7. Sansa has shut the shop, done all the prep for tomorrow and shuts the door of her flat with a soft click. She doesn't want to wake Lady, and her bones are aching far too hard to make any large movements. Sansa always works hardest on a Monday, getting the shop ready for the week ahead.  
Setting down her bag, Sansa checks the calendar on her fridge. On Saturday Robb and Margaery are having a party for the first birthday of their little girl, Emma, Sansa's beautiful niece and goddaughter. Whilst she's ecstatic she gets to see Emma (Sansa doesn't get much time off from running Slice, having only opened it a year ago) Sansa is not looking forward to seeing Theon.  
Theon Greyjoy. After the dating disaster (could she even call it that?) of four years ago, Sansa has had Theon in her life to torment her with surprising reliability. He is reckless, and disorganised, with a penchant for picking up college girls fresh from high school. He's twenty seven.  
She knows that Theon means no harm, though. He's just stuck being a big kid. And he adores Emma, anyone can see that. Not only did Robb and Margaery name Sansa godmother to Emma, they named Theon godfather. Sansa wanted to deck Robb for that, when Emma was christened, but Robb always seems to have a plan for things, so she didn't question it. Maybe it's because Emma brings out a better side of Theon.

\\\\\

Saturday comes around and Sansa dons her most godmotherly sundress and arms herself with Emma's present and the cake she baked for her, too. It's far superior to the wedding cake she baked for Robb and Margaery, something Margaery notices.  
"I think you love that little girl more than you love me and Robb", she points out.  
"No Margaery, not think. I know I love Emma more than you and Robb. To be honest I'm not sure how something so angelic managed to come out of you two."  
"I would say I'm hurt, but I have to agree. I look at her sometimes and I just can't believe she's mine and Robb's." Margaery glances over at Robb, who is wrestling Theon on the bouncy castle they've set up in the back garden.  
"Emphasis on Robb." Sansa laughs, watching Theon get Robb in a headlock, "and I feel sorry for the girl who decides to procreate with Theon."  
"Decides?" Margaery looks at Sansa, mirth in her eyes. "I just kind of thought that Theon would turn up one day with a kid that he didn't even know he had."  
Sansa agrees. "You're right. I can definitely see that happening."  
"He'd make a good dad, though." Margaery declares. Sansa finds herself agreeing with that, too. At that moment the babysitter Amy brings Emma in and hands her to Margaery who coos at Emma, stroking the tufts of red hair on her head. "Here's the birthday girl!" Margaery hands Emma to Sansa who takes her with ease. As Margaery pops the candles on to the Paw Patrol cake that Sansa made, Sansa sees Theon come up behind her, waving a squeaky toy over Emma's head.  
Sansa rolls her eyes. "She's not a dog Theon." But Emma seems enthralled all the same.  
Happy Birthday is sung to an oblivious Emma, who doesn't have a concept of birthdays yet and seems more interested in her own toes, and Margaery insists on taking a picture of the two godparents together. "Say cheese!" She says. Sansa smiles, whilst Theon shouts out "Cheese!" with volume.

///

It's two weeks since Emma's birthday and Dickon hasn't been in the shop for all of those two weeks. Sansa doesn't want to assume anything, but she's having withdrawals from his face and so she decides to 'draw' the results of the free lunch. The only problem is that she doesn't have his last name, so she has to ring up all 4 Dickons that placed their card in the bowl.  
The first Dickon is a very happily married man according to his livid wife, who demands to know who Sansa is and why she is ringing her husband asking to take him out to lunch. The second and third Dickons are both gay, and when Sansa comes to the last Dickon, Dickon Tarly, she hopes this isn't a running theme. The phone goes straight to voicemail, so Sansa leaves her message.  
"Hi Dickon, it's Sansa, from Slice. I'm really hoping this is turkey on rye, because I've been through three other Dickons and none of them were particularly happy to get a call from me. Anyway, if this is you then give me a call back because I wanted to know if you would care to sample someone else's turkey on rye with me, to see how it measures up to mine. I'm also just now noticing how much of a euphemism that sounds like, so I'm going to hang up now and crawl into a hole. Give me a call back!"  
Sansa sighs into her bubble bath, the foam curling tendrils of hair on the back of her neck. A minute later, she's getting a call, and she all but tips all of the water out of her bath trying to answer it, thinking it's Dickon.  
It's not Dickon. Sansa races down to the police station, heart beating in her mouth as she fears the absolute worst. The worst comes true.  
"They were hit by a drunk driver. I'm so sorry ma'am, but they died on impact."  
Sansa can't believe what she's hearing. She can't feel her fingers, she can't feel anything. She doesn't feel her back hitting the wall, or the tears streaming down her face. She doesn't feel it when Theon arrives, motorbike helmet in hand, and sweeps her into his embrace. He clutches her so tightly.  
"Emma." Sansa basically shouts. "They have a baby girl, Emma. Was she in the car with them?"  
The police officer shakes his head. "No, she was in the care of a minor, a babysitter. She's been taken in with Child Protective Services for now, they deal with cases like this."  
"Cases like this?" Sansa echoes.  
"Orphaned children." The officer grimaces.  
Sansa suddenly feels it all.


	3. Theon

<p>Theon wakes up that day how  
he wakes up most days- with a pounding head and a girl in his bed. The events of last night are fuzzy, but Theon remembers doing shots with this girl and he guesses the rest is history, as it usually is. Getting out of bed, he heads to his fridge, takes a swig out of the orange juice carton and turns around to see the girl awake and staring at him with a wicked smile. But Theon has work in 30 minutes, and the girl isn't that tempting to be honest, in the bright light of the morning sun.

"Morning..." Theon pauses as he recollects her name, "Hannah. Sleep well?"  
"Mmm, very well." The girl stretches strategically and shifts so there is more room in  
"Good, I'm glad. Well I've got to shower and head to work, but help yourself to anything in the fridge before you leave." Theon offers, knowing full well that he has mayo and fishfingers and that’s about it.  
"Leave?" The girl frowns.  
"Yeah." Theon shrugs. He gives her another glance before turning and heading to the bathroom, praying to the Drowned God that she's gone before he gets out.

Theon's day at work is most like every other day, with the pounding in his head lessening to a dull thud by lunchtime. Davos hands out stories for everyone to report on that week, and Theon gets the big Night's Watch vs Golden Company game alongside Davos. Theon likes Davos, and apparently he sees some sort of potential in Theon to move up the ranks of journalists at the Winterfell Post. And really, Theon's career is all he's got going for him. That and his goddaughter, Emma. And his mates.

By 8PM Theon is back home and ready to go out again that night when he gets a phone call from Sansa. Which is very, very weird. Sansa has only rang Theon once, and that was when she was drunk and in a bar closest to Theon's apartment. Sansa's friends dropped her off at his, she passed out on the sofa, and by the time Theon had woken up Sansa was gone, with a little thank you note stuck to his fridge. But Sansa had made Theon promise to never mention that, ever. He doubted she would repeat her mistake, and so early on in the night. He picks up the phone, warily.

"Theon?" He hears Sansa's voice echo from the speaker of his phone, and she sounds like she’s crying.  
 "Sansa?" Theon answers back, more than confused.  
"Theon-" Sansa gulps for air, voice shaking, "Theon can you come down to the police station, please?" She sounds desperate. Sansa would never, ever be desperate for his presence.  
"The police station? Why? What's happened?" Dread starts to pool at the pit of his stomach.  
"It's Robb, and Margaery. They got into a-" Sansa stops then, sobs clenching her voice and Theon is already shrugging on his jacket.  
"I'll be there in 15 minutes." Theon tries to stay strong and determined, because one of them needs to be in this situation, but he finds he can't stop the little tremor in his words from escaping.

They were hit by a drunk driver, he's told. Both Robb and Margaery, and the driver of the other car died on impact. Their car flipped, and that was that. They were going out for a meal, the first time they'd been out on their own since Emma's birth. It was their first time out.                                                                         
Theon takes Sansa into his arms because it's the only thing he can do. There is literally nothing else he can do in the situation, apart from hold her and quieten her sobs and try to stop the tears from leaking out of his own eyes. 

Theon drives them both to Robb and Margaery's house in the suburbs, Sansa too tired to drive. They go there because they aren't sure what to do in the situation, and they need to focus on Emma who doesn't even know how much her life has changed in the span of one single moment, one car flip, one drunk driver. They go there because they don't want to be alone. When they both walk into the house, Sansa flips the light on, and around them is a vignette of Robb and Margaery together, the life they had built. Emma's toys are strewn on the carpet, a laundry basket lies on the table, bills are pinned to a cork board. Robb's work bag is resting on the bottom of the stairs, and Theon watches Sansa mindlessly pick it up and place it on a cabinet in the hall. Theon is afraid to move, to touch anything, like they're coming back at any moment and Margaery will get angry that Theon moved something and now she can't find it.  He walks like a ghost through their house, looking around. Robb's keys are on the coffee table; Robb always forgets his keys. One of Margaery's shoes lies underneath the sofa; Margaery is always losing on half of a pair of shoes. Except they aren't always doing anything anymore.

Theon hears Sansa behind him. She has a phone in her hands, saying she needs to make some calls, and Theon just nods. He watches as Sansa shouts down the phone at someone from Child Protective Services, wanting to calm her down but unsure how. He's unsure of everything now. How do you prepare for the sudden death of your two best friends?

"I just don't understand why we can't see her now? I don't care about your protocol!" Sansa sighs, running a hand through her hair. "Yes, I will be here at this number, Please call as early as you can." Theon can see that tears are imminent in Sansa's eyes again, so he stands up and grabs her wrist. Sansa flinches, like she’d forgotten he was there.  
"I'm sure she's okay. Why don't we sleep here tonight? That way if they call early we'll be ready as soon as possible." Sansa nods, the tears backing down as she realises that she's not alone in this. "You can take their guest bedroom.” Theon offers as well, not sure what else to say.  
                                                                                            “Okay," Sansa replies, and Theon can see fatigue physically grip her as soon as he mentions sleep. "You can take their bedroom."  
"Nope.” Theon lets out, too quickly. “No thank you. I'll sleep on the sofa." Theon can't imagine anything worse right now than sleeping in the sheets that Robb and Margaery were expecting to come home to tonight. 

\\\

"Anybody call?" Theon asks as he walks into the kitchen and sees Sansa pottering about.  
"Just their lawyer," she stands up straighter, "He's coming over now to talk to us."

The lawyer, a Mr. Mormont, arrives, briefcase in hand and looking much too official to be sat in a dining room with a high chair next to him. 

"Firstly, I would just like to say how sorry I am to hear the news. Everyone at the firm is going to miss Robb very much." Theon just looks blankly at him. What good is sorry? Mormont clears his throat. "Anyway, I'm sure you both have many questions.”  
"Emma," Theon and Sansa both say at the same time. Theon looks at Sansa, and continues, "What's happening with Emma?”  
"I've already arranged her transfer. The foster family from last night will bring her to CPS. Then she needs to be picked up, and brought here, because they feel she will adjust best in her own environment”  
"Okay, and who will do that?" Theon asks.  
Mormont looks at Theon with confusion. "Did Robb and Margaery not talk to you about the guardianship arrangements?" Theon and Sansa both look at eachother, Sansa's eyes wide. "When we were discussing their will, they decided who would take guardianship of Emma in the unlikely event that they should both die. They named, well, they named you. Both of you.”  
"I'm sorry." Sansa cuts in, leaning forward. "They named us, together?”   
"I know this probably isn't how you imagined starting a family-“  
"We're not married." Sansa interrupts.  
Theon snorts. "They tried to set us up on a blind date, and we never even made it to the restaurant."  
"Yeah, because someone was being a massive prick-“  
"I know." The lawyer stops the both of them. "I tried to advise them against it. But there are options. You can say no. You aren't being given guardianship of a goldfish here. This is a child we’re talking about here.”  
"Options?" Theon echoes.  
"There's Margaery's father. A few of your cousins, Sansa. Your sister, Arya. But you two were the closest to them, and Emma knows you best."   
There’s a pause, a beat. Something wordless is agreed between the two.                    
"I want to do it." Sansa says immediately.  
"Yeah," Theon sits back in his chair, not even noticing how on edge he had been. "I want to too."

//

 It's decided that they should move in there, to Robb and Margaery's house for the time being, whilst Emma adjusts. Theon becomes a guardian and a homeowner and best-friend-less, all in one day.

 They go to pick up Emma from CPS, where they are made to sign contracts and fill in forms. They're both just itching to see Emma, the cries of babies all round them like tiny little needle pricks to the heart. A lady brings Emma out, and Sansa immediately rushes towards her, arms outstretched, cardigan falling off of her shoulder. Theon sits back, watching the two of them, looking at Emma, with Robb and Sansa's red hair. Emma's crying, she doesn't understands where she is and she probably just wants her parents. Theon knows the feeling.


	4. Sansa

When Sansa was in her first year of sixth form, she got her first boyfriend. Joffrey Baratheon was everything she thought she had wanted in a boy; he was handsome, and popular, and had the most beautiful green eyes that Sansa frequently found herself lost in.  
Joffrey wasn’t particularly nice, however. He made comments about Sansa’s appearance, and he got angry whenever Sansa talked to another boy. One time, after Joffrey saw Sansa talking to Podrick Payne about the essay question they had been given in English, he hit her. Joffrey managed to leave an emotional mark on Sansa as well as a physical one.

When Robb found out, he didn’t act as Sansa had expected him to. Of course, Sansa had never seen him so angry, and he immediately flew off the handle threatening Joffrey. Sansa burst into tears because she was so overwhelmed by everything. So Robb didn’t go and give Joffrey what he deserved (yet), but instead he sat down with Sansa and gave her what she deserved. They lay under blankets together, watching The Little Mermaid. Robb knew all the words and sang Sebastian’s part with a perfect accent because Sansa had watched it so often growing up. He flung malteasers into Sansa’s mouth, and ordered her favourite pizza for tea. He helped to heal her fractured heart.

Sansa’s heart didn’t just feel fractured now, though. She felt completely ripped in two, and Robb wasn’t around to sing Under The Sea like an idiot and patch up Sansa’s pain. Sansa didn’t know how to heal herself the way Robb could.

//

"We need to establish a sleep schedule." Sansa says, after settling Emma in her cot and taking a moment on the sofa.

"A what?" Theon asks, taking a swig of beer and plonking down on the arm chair opposite her. "A sleep schedule, Theon. For which nights who is going to be up with her. We also need to schedule everything else; timetable who takes her to the childminders, babysitting and all of that." Theon just nods. He looks perpetually in a state of confusion and anxiety, and Sansa can't blame him. Becoming a guardian to Robb and Margaery's baby was not in the 5 year plan. Or the 10 year. Or any plan of hers at all.

"Do you think they made a mistake?" Theon asks her, twirling the beer in his hand.  
"Margaery was a planner, and she knew what she was doing. They wouldn't have given us guardianship of Emma if they didn't think we could do this, Theon, and I trust in that."  
"Maybe you're right. But why didn't Robb tell me? This isn't the kind of thing you forget to mention. 'Hey Theon, did you see that assist that Hardyng gave Strickland in the Golden Company's last game? By the way, I'm giving you guardianship of my kid if I die.' Plus, how the fuck are we going to afford a place like this? Robb was a junior partner at a law firm, I don't make that kind of money. And what do you do, Sansa, bake scones for a living? We can't afford all the bills, as well as everything for Emma."  
"Well what do you want me to say, Theon?" Sansa bursts out, her head spinning from baby formula making and number crunching and grieving. "What do you want me to say? You can back out if you want. I'll do this on my own if that's what it takes. But Emma loves you, and I don't want to be in this alone."  
Theon sits back, engrossed in the beer in his hands again. "I'm sorry. You're right. I want to do this, for Emma."  
Sansa picks up her own beer bottle, forgotten on the coffee table. She tips it towards Theon, before raising it to her lips. "For Emma." 

\\\

A month after Robb and Margaery's death, and Sansa and Theon seem to settle into some kind of a routine. Sansa wakes up at 6AM, puts the laundry on, makes herself breakfast before Emma wakes up and is fed. Theon drops Emma off at the childminders on his way to work and Sansa heads into the bakery, usually with spit-up or milk on her top. Sansa leaves Slice early to pick up Emma and takes her home, whilst Theon comes home an hour later and starts on the tea. Emma is in bed by 7 and of course, wakes up several times in the night. Depending on whose turn it is, Sansa wakes up when Emma wakes up. It's hard, but Sansa makes it work, for Robb and Margaery.

Living with Theon is interesting to say the least. He's dreadful at doing the laundry, and always complains about getting up in the night. And why does the man just walk out of the shower with only a towel hanging from his waist? Sansa has bumped into him several times, does he not own any pyjamas? She always goes red in the face, flustered like a teenager. To be honest, Sansa would take staying up all night with Emma over having to bump into Theon, fresh from the shower. But he's trying, and he adores Emma. He may complain about having to get up but he does it everytime, and tonight is no different. It's Sansa's turn, but as she turns the corner into Emma's bedroom she sees Theon rocking Emma back to sleep. He's cradling her against his chest, quietly humming Tiny Dancer by Elton John. Sansa stands at the door and watches the scene. Maybe Robb and Margaery had it right after all.

After Theon gets Emma back to sleep, the pair find themselves in the kitchen, talking over bowls of cereal. Sansa sometimes finds it hard to get back to sleep after waking up around 3 AM, and apparently so does Theon. 

“So what are you going to do now you have Emma? With dating?” Theon asks her, mouth full of frosted flakes. “I hate to break it to you, but guys don’t generally like it when their women come with babies attached.”  
“By guys I’m going to assume you mean degenerates like you, Theon. So it’s a good thing, because I’ll scare off all the bad ones.”  
“You’ll scare everyone off if you’re always walking around with baby puke on your shoulder.” Sansa scowls at him for that.  
“And what about you?”  
“Don’t worry about me. Having a baby is like having a six pack.”  
Sansa scoffs. “I thought you weren’t interested in dating, anyway?”  
“Oh, trust me, I’m not. Robb was always the one who wanted to settle down and have kids.”  
“Yeah, he was like that even when we were younger. He used to want to be my dad so badly, he cried when he found out he couldn’t grow a beard and a moustache until he’d hit puberty. My dad bought him a pair of cargo trousers, though, so he felt a little better.”  
Theon laughs at that. “Yeah, that sounds like Robb. I remember when he told me that Margaery was pregnant. I’d never seen him so happy. He said he’d felt like he’d finally made it in life.”  
There’s a silence after a that, a realisation that Robb hadn’t died an unhappy man.  
Theon’s spoon clanging against his bowl brings them out of their reverie, and Sansa moves hurriedly to clear away their pots. Too much retrospection is never good at 3AM; Sansa learnt that the hard way.

They linger on the landing, neither one really knowing how to end their little rendezvous. They’re broaching new territory, almost becoming friends. Sansa laughs at the idea of her and Theon, friends.  
“What are you laughing at?” Theon smirks at her, hand poised on the handle of the bedroom door.  
“Oh, nothing. Have a good rest-of-the-night’s sleep, Theon.”  
“You too, Sansa.”

//

Arya comes to see her the next day, whilst she’s elbow deep in bread dough.  
“Hello stranger.” Arya jumps up beside the sink, small legs swinging.  
“Hi you.” Sansa replies, wiping flour on her cheek. “How you holding up?”  
“I’m fine. As fine as we all can be. I should be asking you that. And how’s my favourite niece? And Greyjoy?”  
“We’re all doing okay. In fact, I’ve got to go and pick Emma up in about half an hour. Want to come with? We can take a walk around the park, she always naps in her stroller when it’s sunny like this.”  
“Sure.”

Sansa and Arya stroll leisurely around the park whilst Emma sleeps. The sunlight dances on the grass through the gaps of the trees, and Sansa breathes in the fresh air. She’s glad for the breather, and she’s glad Arya is here with her. Starks should stick together.  
“How are you finding things?” Arya asks Sansa, tucking a strand of short brown hair behind her ear. It exposes the small tattoo of a hammer behind her ear, a tattoo she got for her boyfriend, Gendry. Sansa envies Arya for finding her soulmate in her first try. Sansa has kissed many a frog and found no prince.  
“I’m managing. Me and Theon have got into something of a routine now. Of course, I’ve had to put the expansion of Slice on hold, but it’s worth it for Emma. That’s kind of my mantra now- For Emma. Everything I do is for Emma. Is that what being a parent is? I never realised how much mum and dad sacrificed, and they had 5 of us.”  
“I know you and your planning. Throws a bit of a spanner in the works, doesn’t it?”  
“Just a bit!” Sansa replies, smiling down at Emma. “The best spanner I could have ever asked for though. But she’s a little shit for not eating my food!”  
“Shock horror, someone doesn’t like Sansa Stark’s food? Bake her your chocolate lava cake.”  
“I’m not giving her chocolate lava cake for tea every day.”  
“And Theon? How is he doing?”  
“Better than I thought he would be, you know. He loves Emma, and that’s what counts. We aren’t best friends, either, but we don’t hate each other anymore.”  
“You never hated Theon. If Robb saw something good in him, then you can’t hate him.”  
Sansa blinks. She had never thought of it like that before.  
“Robb always did manage to find the best in people. Margaery too. They found the best in each other.” Sansa wonders out loud.  
“Margaery saw the best in Gendry when she introduced him to me. I just thought there was nothing going on behind the eyes with that boy, but turns out he’s cleverer than you’d think.”  
“Getting his degree in engineering soon isn’t he?” Sansa asks.  
“Yeah. 5 years late, but I’m still so proud. Margaery got it right with that one. And she got it right with you and Theon. I know it.”  
Sansa bumps Arya with her hip. “I hope you’re right.”  
“When am I ever wrong? By the way, there’s someone I want Theon to meet. A new friend, her names Myranda.”  
Sansa isn’t sure how to feel about this. “Are you sure this is the right time, Arya. The one thing I don’t need is Theon distracted by a new squeeze.”  
“She’s not looking for anything serious. And it’s not like you’re married. What about that Dickon bloke you keep trying to go out with?”  
“Haven’t heard from him in a while, actually.”  
“Let me just introduce them. Please? Myranda’s new in town, and she could do with some fun.”  
“Theon’s less fun these days and more knee deep in nappies and cuddly toys.”  
“Then it will be good for him to get out.”  
“Fine. I’ll ask him about it.”  
Arya grins, then pulls out her phone as she receives a text message.  
“I’ve got to go meet Rickon, he needs back up in some beef he’s got with some kid at school. Tell Theon I said hi. And bring my favourite niece round to my flat, soon! That’s an order!”  
“Gods’ sake Arya! Don’t go punching any 16 year olds. Mum will have an aneurysm. That’s the last thing she needs. The anniversary of dad’s death is coming up soon as well.”  
“I won’t. Bye. Love you!”  
“Love you too.” Sansa replies, rolling her eyes but laughing all the same. She feels uneasy at the prospect of introducing Theon to this Myranda girl. She can’t help but feel like it will rock the boat and muddy the waters of the precarious family set up they’ve found themselves in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t want to focus on mourning Robb and Margaery too much. Whilst their deaths will obviously affect Sansa and Theon massively in my story, I don’t want it to hinder the plot moving along! That’s why I didn’t include the funeral etc.  
> Hope you enjoyed! :)


	5. Theon

The date with Myranda isn’t going so well. They’ve made it to the restaurant, more than he can say for him and Sansa. But in the back of his mind something feels off for Theon. Myranda is a beautiful woman, and normally he would be dialling up the charm to get her to fall into bed with him. But Theon’s bed has got some of Emma’s stuffed toys lying on it, and the anniversary of Sansa’s dad’s death is tomorrow. Theon can’t help but feel a little bit guilty.

”Arya tells me you’re a guardian to a little girl? Her niece?” Myranda smiles as she takes a sip of her wine.  
“Yeah, Emma. Her mum and dad died about a month and a half ago. Robb was my best friend. What else could I do?”  
“I admire you. Putting your life on hold like that. Having a child is basically a life sentence.” Myranda says matter of factly. Theon sits up straighter in his chair.  
“A life sentence?”  
“Yeah, you know. You can’t go out spontaneously anymore, can’t stay out all night partying. You’ve got to help with homework and pack lunches instead. My sister’s just had a baby and she’s no fun anymore.”  
Theon isn’t liking where this conversation is heading. “Okay, but this is different. Emma needs me. So does Sansa.”  
“Arya told me about that, too. Sounds like she basically roped you into keeping this guardianship.”  
“Sansa didn’t rope me into anything. I wanted to do this, for Emma. And for Sansa. She’s just lost her big brother and her best friend.”  
Myranda just shrugs, toying with a lettuce leaf on her plate. 

The date isn’t so successful after that. The thoughts in the back of Theon’s mind are brought to the forefront now, the words ‘Life Sentence’ repeating like a stuck record, or like one of the nursery rhymes Emma needs to be played at least 3 times before she’ll nod off. Everything Myranda says after that leaves a bitter taste in Theon’s mouth. When she suggests heading back to hers for more drinks, Theon swiftly makes his excuses, saying he has an early start tomorrow. Myranda raises an eyebrow, before kissing his cheek like he’s got the plague (or a baby, probably the same thing in her eyes) and gets in a taxi home.

When Theon arrives home, he sees Sansa sat at the dining room table, head in her hands. Her red hair is scraped into a messy bun on the top of her head, and she’s wearing a pair of jogging bottoms that look like they haven’t been washed in a good few weeks. Theon stand in the doorway, unsure what to do.  
“You okay?” He asks, making Sansa bolt out of her skin before him.  
“Fucking hell, you scared me. How was your date?”  
“Shit. She wasn’t very nice about Emma. How was your night?”  
“I’ve been sat here for two hours stressing over these bills. If we want to afford them I’m going to have to put the expansion of Slice to bed completely. Plus, Dickon rang me. He asked me out. How can I go out with him looking like this?” She gestures wildly to her appearance, and Theon laughs.  
“Sansa, everyone knows you could make a bin bag look good.” This makes Sansa blush. “Go out with him. Me and Emma will be fine. And don’t worry about the bills. We’ll sort something out, but it’s late now. Go to bed.”  
Sansa nods, yawning as if on cue. This feels eerily similiar to a night not so long ago. Theon shakes off the feeling.

//

Theon and Emma are watching a Paw Patrol episode that Theon has seen far too many times for a 27 year old man when Sansa comes down the stairs, dressed for her date. She’s wearing a navy blue dress, and her hair is curled nicely. Theon smiles.  
“You look nice. I like that dress.”  
“Thanks. I actually wore it to our date.” Theon’s heart has a weird little clench at this. He shakes it off.  
“Have a nice time tonight. You need it.”  
“Alright. Bye little lady!” Sansa blows a kiss to Emma and is out the door.

Theon looks at Emma. “Just you and me kiddo.” She gurgles in response.

With no one at home except a sleeping one year old, Theon is forced to amble about the house aimlessly, doing random jobs, waiting for the tiredness to hit and telling himself over and over that he isn’t waiting up for Sansa. The house is eerily quiet; Theon has never really been alone in here. He goes up to see Emma, who is sleeping fitfully but Theon doesn’t make much of it because Emma, like her mother, is a light sleeper.  
“You have Robb’s hair, little Em, but you have your mum’s eyes. Your mum and dad,” Emma jostles a little, “were the best people I knew. And I will make sure you grow up knowing that.”

Theon looks around the little nursery, sky blue paint coating the walls with wispy clouds dotted around for decoration. On one mantelpiece is a photo of Emma, Robb and Margaery, and on the other is a photo of Sansa, Theon and Emma. That was taken on Emma’s first birthday. Theon smiles, thinking about the weed that Robb had ‘confiscated’ from the boys who had set up the bouncy castle. Theon wondered if it was still in the house. He also wondered if Sansa had ever smoked weed. “Of course not.” He wonders out loud, “but I bet she could make some cracking edibles.”  
Now Theon thinks of Sansa. She’s taken him by surprise. Before all of this happened, Theon had taken so much joy in winding her up like a little school boy. His teachers had always said that he only likes to tease girls because he fancied them, which he always found gross. But Sansa wasn’t gross, and he loved their love-hate relationship. But now they are guardians of a little girl, there’s not much time for love-hate. Theon has got to know Sansa; intelligent, funny Sansa with a heart wide enough to take in a little girl and a bigger man. Through the ins and outs of Sansa’s grief, Theon saw the truth of her.

But Sansa was on a date, with Dr. Dickon Dreamboat as Arya had called him, and there is no way Theon would even think about going there with Sansa. The boundaries they had set up were way too sacred. For Emma, they always said to each other. Maybe subconscious Theon was trying to warn conscious Theon off of something. Bloody subconscious Theon.

At that moment, Emma wakes up, balling her eyes out. Theon immediately picks her up, everything Sansa said about self soothing out the window. But she won’t settle down, and Theon feels Emma’s forehead to find it hot to touch. He doesn’t want to do this, but he has no choice. Maybe subconscious Theon is a little bit happy he’s interrupting Sansa’s date, but only after he finds out Emma is okay.  
“Sansa? Hello?” Theon asks when he hears her pick up the phone.  
“Theon, I get one night off.” She grits out.  
“I’m not calling for you, I’m calling for Dr. Love.”  
Sansa appears to pass the phone over, and soon Theon is talking to Dickon Tarly. “Hi, this is Theon. Emma’s temperature is pretty high and she’s crying her heart out and won’t stop. Is there something wrong?”  
“It could be a couple of things,” Dickon replies, “if you head down to the emergency room I’ll give Dr. Reed a call, that way you won’t have to wait. We’ll meet you down there in about an hour.” “Thanks, Dickon.”  
“No problem.”

//

Down at the hospital, Theon sees Sansa rushing up to them even though he’s only been here for twenty minutes. “How is she?” She immediately asks, taking Emma in her arms.  
“Obviously not great. The doctor’s about to see her now, your dreamboat was right when he said we didn’t have to wait.”  
Sansa turns her head to smile at Dickon who is talking to another doctor- Theon watches her do so.

An hour later and they find out that Emma as a urinary tract infection. She’s put on an antibiotic drip, but they’re told that it’s notbing serious. Theon soothes Emma as he watches Sansa and Dickon leave the hospital room to talk. Dickon is explaining something to Sansa until she takes his face in her hands and kisses him, short and sweet. Dickon leaves with a smile plastered on his face, and Sansa walks back into the room. Theon completely ignores the slight stab of bitterness he feels.

Sansa and Theon sit by side in the hospital room, both exhausted.  
“I’ve never been so scared in my entire life than I was just then.” Theon admits.  
“When you called me and asked for Dickon instead, I was terrified too.”  
“Will it get better? The worrying?” Theon asks.  
“I don’t think so. First you worry about them being so small, then you worry about them at school, then you worry about sending them off into the big wife world.”  
“Who knew one little human could be the cause of so much joy and so much worry?”  
“I may have worried, but do you want to know something?” Sansa let’s out. “I completely forgot it was the anniversary of my dad’s death. Does that make me a terrible person?”  
Theon takes Sansa’s hand. “No.” He says firmly. “It means you are the best person for Emma in this world right now.”  
Sansa clutches Theon’s hand tightly. Theon finds he doesn’t want her to let go.


End file.
